Manslaughter charge in fatal beating of wallet thief in New Orleans

Published 3:48 pm Saturday, August 11, 2018

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A man has been beaten to death in New Orleans after stealing another man’s wallet, and the wallet’s owner now faces a manslaughter charge.

The New Orleans Advocate reports that 31-year Simon Morris was arrested in the death of a man identified only as Edwin.

Police said Edwin approached Morris and asked him for a dollar outside a gas station Friday morning, but then snatched the wallet from Morris’s back pocket. Morris chased and caught Edwin.

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Police said Edwin was severely beaten and kicked for at least five minutes despite efforts by others to intervene. Edwin died later at a hospital.

A manslaughter conviction can result in no prison time or up to 40 years.

Records indicate Morris remained jailed Saturday. No information was immediately available on his attorney.